Mental Health Resources

Mental Health Resources

I’ve been thinking recently about digestion. Digestion is the process of breaking things down and sorting them into smaller parts. It involves a complex orchestration of many bodily systems: the stomach, intestines, our gut microbiome, and vagus nerves, etc.

These many parts are critical supports for turning what we eat into useful energy or waste. When it works, it’s a process of integration, of incorporation.

But when we ingest things that are aggravating to the system, digestion and incorporation become difficult. This is when it is necessary to support those systems within us that make digestion possible.

This is why, during this global time of change, it is important to do what we can individually and collectively to support the systems that help us integrate this “new normal.” We are digesting this ever-changing experience on mental, emotional, physical, physiological, spiritual, energetic and interpersonal levels. As a fellow human on planet earth today I want to say to you we are all in this together. You do not have to do this alone.

Below is a list of resources that may be supportive to you or to others in your life. Please explore, add and share. This is by no means an exhaustive list. Feel free to leave comments below to add or amend this list.

Created by the National Center for Telehealth and Technology, this app is a portable stress management tool that teaches users a skill called diaphragmatic breathing. Breathe2Relax works by decreasing the body’s ‘fight-or-flight’ stress response, making it a great option for people suffering from PTSD

The Icarus Project website: “A support network and education project by and for people who experience the world in ways that are often diagnosed as mental illness. We advance social justice by fostering mutual aid practices that reconnect healing and collective liberation. We transform ourselves through transforming the world around us.”

Coronavirus Online Therapy website: “Free & Low Fee Online Therapy Sessions for those on the front line of Covid-19 in the USA.

Healthcare professionals, first responders, grocery store employees, and those out there serving us during this pandemic – we thank you. You are doing your part. We’d like to do ours, by supporting you with short-term, free & reduced fee sessions.”

Down Dog app: “So that anyone who wants to practice at home can do so, we are making all of our apps – Down Dog, Yoga for Beginners, HIIT, Barre, and 7 Minute Workout – completely free until May 1st. In response to the many school closures taking place, we are also offering free access until July 1st for all students and teachers (K-12 and college). To access the free school membership, please register your school’s domain by visiting downdogapp.com/schools. We are also extending free access until July 1 for all healthcare professionals so we can help those who are helping us. Please visit downdogapp.com/healthcare to register your work healthcare domain.”

Worry Watch app: Aims to help users identify their trigger points for anxiety, note trends in their feelings, reflect on when the outcomes were harmless, and change their thinking patterns for the future